Packing machine for containers and the like



Dec. 26, 1939. A. SOWDEN PACKING MACHINE FOR CONTAINERS AND THE LIKEFiled March 31, '1.938 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 4 6 Z 7 T a wm ma V 4 J\,/Mm w4n2 1 w I /w MW A y 3V Mr F 6 Z w? ififi fl, i I E Ila w w m fi w m M MUMa 5 M a l 6 26, A. SOWDEN 2,184,474 ucxme MACHINE FOR CONTAINERS AND wasL'IKE Filed March 51, 1938 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Y a I sad 4.

A d A| Ing/legrogz fr'e a en, I afi/AQ Dec. 26, 1939. sow 2,184,474

PACKING'MACHINETDR CONTAINERS AND THE LIKE Filed March 31. 1938 4Sheets-Sheet 3 .IQ 'W Dec. 26, 1939. sow 2,184,474

PACKING MACHINE FOR CONTAINERS AND THE LIKE Filed March 31. 1938 4Sheets-Sheet 4 H2. lit

Invenfo'r:

-A red den,

Patented Dec. 26, 1939 PACKING MAGHINE FOR. coutralrmnsv AND THE LIKE. Y

Alfred Sowden, Arkansas City, Kans.

Application. March 31, 1938., Serial No. 139,225

Claims. (o1.- 226-23) This invention relates to improvements machinesfor packing material into containers, and v the like. It relatesespecially to machines for filling and packing material into bagsandsimiand loosening of the-materialduring thefilling operation;- andespecially I producea machine which will pack the, material with. auniformity. from bottom to top which cannot vbe,attained.Icy

51- lar containers, but the features of: the invention any other formof, machine with which. I am '5 are not necessarily limited to such use.-I shall familiar. Suchan arrangement is tobe clearly illu trate anddescribe a particular application distinguished from one in which thecompressing of the invention as used for the filling and action takesvplace on the top of a previously packing of such materials as flour,bran, feed, introducedslugof material. v

10; fertilizer, etc., into bags, since such applica- I As a simple formor embodiment of my in 140 tions constitute an important use oftheinvenvention I provide an arrangementin which the tion, but in sodoing I do not intend to; limit pressure exerted on the impelleris due'to'the. the usefulness of the invention, except as 1- weight of-theimpeller and the. shaft by which may do so in the claims to. follow. itis. supported and driven, said impeller-and When such materials as flourand the like Shaft resting at. alltimes on the-topoithemass L5. areintroduced into thecontainer, they are, more of continuously introducedmaterial, and bein or less completely loosened and infiufiyor airsupportedthereby, and thusexerting at all times bound condition, and abody of such material I a continuous'andsuniiormpressure on the macannotbe uniformly packed or compressed by terial asitisintroducedsothatthecompressing application of a compressing force tooneend of action. is uniform throughout the entire body of such body.The action of compressingsthe mamaterial, no. matter. how high thecolumn of terial must be attended with a release of the material, or howdeep the bag, may be, Gen-i air from the body of material, andfurthermore erally, also, l2v support the bag stationarily; as theapplication of the compressing force to one, distinguishedfrom allowingthe bag to fall-orend of such a body must necessarily compress descenddur g h fill nsp ratiQn; th sen the material at such end to a greaterextent suring the uniformity of pressure on the enters than thecompressing which will be produced ingmateriaL-since, if; they bagwereto beallowed at the. far end. Such a scheme is also attendedtodescendas it became filled the weight of the. with serious limitationsas to the speed with bag and contained material would continuously 3!which the action can be carried on. increase with attendant dimcultiesoi counter- 39 Thepresent invention relates to an improved balancing andthelike. form of machine in which the material is com- -I- haveprovidedrmeans to release the filled pressed in a regular and continuousmanner as bag, allowing it to descend to a conveyor or the i it isintroduced into the bag or other container, like, when filled, andclearing-themachine'prefrom the beginning to the end of the fillingopparatory to another filling operation. In this 35. eration, so thatwhen such operation is'zcomconnection, I have provided automatic meansDleted the entire mass or slug of material will for efiecting suchrelease at the proper time, be uniformly compressed or packed throughoutthe supporting platform dropping, andpermitthe length of such body.Generally I'contemting the bag to descend. I have also provided 40 platethe use of means to support the bag durmeans to dampen the descent ofthefilled bag 44A ing e filling and packing operation, with means sothat it will reach the conveyor without ex in. the-form of averticallymovable impeller or cessive impact. ,When the, bag thusfilled" is rotor working within the bag during the operareleased andallowed to descend to the conveyor tion of introducing thematerialthereinto, and the-impellerand shaft are also allowed to de 45 whichimpelleror rotor is pressed down with a scend 'preparatoryto anotherfilling operation; 45 uniform pressure during the entire operation, and'I have also provided means to dampen the so that as the material isintroduced into the fall of 'thesepartsxs'o as to avoid shocks and bagthe impeller keeps working its way'higher damage incident thereto. v andhigher untilthe operation is completed, the When 'thefilling' isaccomplished with a'pre' v impeller working at all times on the topporweighed or predetermined. amount of material, 51} tion of the mass ofmaterial contained within the extent to which the bag willbefilled willthe bag. By this means I produce a very fast depend to some extent onvariable conditions; workingmachine, and onewhich will completely sothat for some materials'the exact height to fill the bag with acontinuous release of the which'the impeller and shaft will. rise'willcorfifg contained airso as to avoi fii iqtssive plowing respondingly'vary. Ihave therefore-alsoapro- 55 vided means permitting adjustment ofthe point at which the platform will be released to meet this variablecondition.

In order to avoid entrance of flour or dust into the bearings and othermoving parts it is desirable to provide an arrangement in which theshaft exposed within the bag shall be smooth and free of splines orother irregularities. I have therefore provided an arrangement in whichthis result maybe accomplished.

During the packing operation and as the material is introduced into thebag it undergoes a pro,- gressive, although rapid, compressing action atthe impeller.

newly introduced material, suchmaterial is loose, and quickly undergoesa compressing action which reduces its volume to some'extent. As thisaction proceeds continuously, the material being at the top isgreaterthan at the bottom, so that the action of these flightswill'-corre'spond to the progressive compressing or packing action.Generally it will be found sufficient, in using this feature, to'providea construction in which the im peller is in two sections; the uppersection having the steeper flights, and the lower section having theeasier flights, so that they correspond substantially to thepacking'action aforesaid.

In connection wtih the impeller construction, it

, will also generally be found desirable to use an arrangement in whichthe impeller "is double threaded, that is, having two sets of flightsspaced one half turn from each other on the shaft. This'is desirabledueto the rapidity with which the shaft rotates, and the rapidity withwhich the packing action proceeds. -In this connection, I have providedan arrangement intended forsuch high speedsof operation as the fillingof one hundred' pound-bags at rates of upwards of--twenty per minutewith flour and similar material, and such speeds require-a very even andcontinuous flow of the material and its packing into the bag in evenmanner in order to avoid excessive blowing due to air-contained withinthe bag.

I have also provided a simple and effective means to support the bags onthe machine during the filling operation and one which will'permit ofready release of the filledbags.

As a further feature of my invention I have provided anarrangement'which lends itself readily to direct drive by a suitable:motor, sothat the benefits of such direct drive may be secured. In thisconnection, this also makes possible the use of the high impeller andshaft speeds necessary for such rapid-filling operation as aredesirable.

I have also provided an arrangement whereby the machine may be readilycutoff from the chute or duct through which-the material is supplied tothe machine, as when it may be desired to discontinue operations for aninterval. of time.

A further feature and'objeot of the invention is to provide anarrangement which can be readily built from structural parts, and fromparts which are susceptible'to manufacture at low cost and by. simplemanufacturing operations.

. Otherobjects and use's 'of the invention will That is, at the instantthe impeller commences its compressing action on a portion of that ofFigure 1;

Figure 3 shows a fragmentary vertical section through the principaloperative parts, being taken on' the lines 33 of Figures 1, 4, 5, 6 and7, looking. in the directions of the arrows, the impeller and shaftbeing at their bottom position, and the platform beingin raised positionto support a bag in operative position;

Figure 4 shows a horizontal section on the lines 4-4 of Figures 1, v and3 looking in the directions-of thearrows; 5 v

Figure 5 shows a horizontal section on the lines 55 of Figures 1, Z-and3 looking'in the directions of the arrows;

Figure 6 shows a horizontal section on the lines 6 6 of Figures 1, 2 and3 looking-in the directions'of the arrows; a i Figure 7 shows ahorizontal section on the lines 1-! -of Figures 1, 2 and 3 looking inthe directions of thearrows; Figure 8 shows a fragmentary horizontalsection through the position of the" cut off slide, being taken on thelines 88 of Figures 3, 9 and 12 looking in the directions of the arrows;

Figure 9 shows a vertical fragmentary crosssection through the cut-offslide, being taken on the lines 99 of Figures 3, 8 and 12 looking in thedirections of the arrows;

Figure 10 shows a fragmentary vertical or elevation view of the upper orhead portion of the machine, partlyin sectionyand it shows theconstruction of the vertical slide at the upper end of the shaft, theplatform release means, and the means for dampening the downwardmovement .of the shaft and connected parts at the completion ofthe'filling and packing operation; I

Figure 11 shows a fragmentary view, partly in section, through the lowerportion of the stand, looking in the direction opposite to that ofFigure 2,and.showing the means for dampeningthe downwardmovement of thefilled bag as it descends to the conve or:

Figure 12 shows a fragmentary vertical section similar to that of Figure3, but illustrating 'a modified construction in which the shaft is (ii--rectly driven by a suitable electric motor, the shaft passing up throughthe quill or hollow shaft of the rotor of the motor;

Figure 13 shows a fragmentary horizontal sec tion on the line I 3| 3 ofFigure 12, looking in the direction of the arrows, showing the splineddrive to the upper portion of the shaft; and

Figure 14 shows a horizontal fragmentary section on the line I 4l 4 ofFigure 12, looking in the direction of the arrows, beneath the splineddrive to the shaft.

Referring first to the arrangement shown in Figures 1 to 11 inclusive,'1 have therein shown a frame including the four vertical channel posts2!], 2!, 22 and 23. Just above the position of the llill arcane Also,the. members 28 and 29 extend. between the cross members. 26 and 21-,and-the members: 30.! s and 3l extend between the cross members Hand 25,so that; the. entire'frame is brought into a rigid but light structure.

A bag supporting head is carried by the posts 22 and 23. This headincludes the. circular-member 32 which is provided with the brackets 33:and 34- which connect: to the posts 22 and 23. and are supported therebyas best shown in Figure. 6'. This member 32'is provided with thetransverse slot 35 reaching" across the member from front. to rear, sothat a cut ofi?" slide 36' maybe-slipped across the member to cut offinflow of material. This slide is provided with the slot 31 whichreaches partially across the slide to accommodate the impeller shaftpresently to be described. The

back portion of this slot may also be closed bya supplementally small,slide 38, set into place from the back side of the machine, if desired,

and up to the position of the shaft. The member 32 is also preferablyprovided with an encircling groove'39 to receive a circular band ofrubber or the like, and thus cover over the exposed opening of the slotwhen the slide is not in place during the running of the machine. Such aband 40- is "shown in place in Figures 3, 4, 5, 6 and 12.

Connected to the member 32 is a downwardly extending ring 4| to whichmay be detachably' connected the bag tube 42 as best shown in Figores 3and 12. The tube 42 is preferably formed with an enlarged portion atitsupper end, tapering rapidly to a smaller neck 43, and then flaringgradually to its lower end 44. The material is to be introduced into andpacked within the bag holder, and due to such flare the slug so packedmay easily descend into and be contained within the bag at theconclusion of theoperation to be presently described. Connected to themember 32 there is also a head member 45, hav-' ing the chute connectionlfi through which the material is fed to the packing and filling"machine, usually from a location at a higher elevation, and usually froma suitable weighing machine.

The bag tube may be removed from the member in convenient manner, notshown in detail, and another tube of greater or smaller size substituted as desired, according to the operations to be performed.Connected to the upper end of the bag tube, or to the member 32, thereare the depending arms or fingers 41 and 48 which are spaced away fromthe body portion of the tube to allow the bag to be conveniently setupwards into place around the tube. For this purpose the arms 41 and 48preferably have their'lower ends beaded as shown in Figure 3, and turnedinwardly towards the bag tube; and if desired one or more balls such'as49 may be set between each of these arms and the bag tube so that thebag may be readily set upwards into place, but will be retained in placewith sufficient force, but not to prevent ready downward movement awayfrom the tube at the conclusion of the operation.

Beneath the lower end of the bag tube and the bag thereon, is a platform50 upon which the weight and pressure of the bag and its contents issupported during the filling and packing operation. This platform ispreferably carried'by a hinged bracket hinged to the bracket members 52and 53 which are carried by the posts is: also provided with anoutwardly reaching arm 54 to'which is connected a link 55, which linkis,

controlled and operatedifromabove in the manner presently to bedescribed. this means the platform is sup-ported inhorizontal positionduring the. filling :operation, and it: sustains the weight'of thebagand filled material, as well as the packing pressure, and when thelink is released the platform is allowed toswing down and allow thefilled and packed bag to, descend to the conveyor 56' ('see. Figures 1:andv 2), which con;-

21- and 22 respectively. I Thisrplatformbracket' 5|.

veyor is placed substantially at floor level and travels from left toright-when viewed as in Figure 1.

If the filled bag were to be allowed to descend directlyto the conveyorupon the freeing of the platform, the bag WOll'Id'CGIIlG to. theconveyor with considerable impact, and damage might'resuit. I'havethereforeprovideda suitable dampener. The same includes. the side platesEland 5.8-which are hinged at their upper edgesto suitable brackets 59',60,61 and 62', by means of the shafts 63 and 64 as best shown. inFiguresZ, 3. and 7. Springsfi'ii;and-68v normally press the, lower endportions of these plates. inwardly towards each other, and if desiredthe lower edge portions of the plates may be provided with theprotuberanceszGT and 681' which will produce an amplified retardingaction just before the bag reaches the conveyor, but above all, willresult in production of a side pressure'against the lower edge portionof the bag, with release of pressure from the upper'portion of the bag,so that the movement of the conveyor travelling laterally will not. tendto tilt the bag and cause it to fall over as it comes onto the conveyor.In other words, the bag will be delivered upright onto the surfaceof'the conveyor.

If desired, a, suitable shock absorber may be connected to the lowerportions of the plates 5'! and 58 to control their action and dampen thesame. This is the hydraulic-shook absorber shown diagrammatically at 69.It may be of any suitable form, such as the so-called Hou- I of filledbag release, will be cushioned, and the bag will beeased down'onto theconveyor. This shock absorber is carried by a cross member "M connectedto the lower portions of the posts 21 and 22 at the side of the machineawayfrom the direction of bag travel.

There is a vertical shaft .15 which is axially carried with respect tothe-bag tube, and is driven at relatively high speed in suitable manner.This shaft extends down throughthe hood 45, and is preferably sealedtherethrough in relatively dust tight manner, as by the'felts it (seeFigures 3 and 12). The lower end of this shaft carries the impeller,which in the form shown includes the upper and lower sectionsl'l and 18.The section I? has its flights of steeper pitch than the section 18 asshown in Figures 3 and 12, so that the incoming material firstencounters these steeper flights which act to rapidly compact thematerial, and then the material is subjected to the action of theflights oflesser pitch by which the materialis further compacted and theaction thus completed. In the form shown the two setsof flights are inthe form of individual impellers, but manifestly a'single impeller mightbe used with its flights of'progressively be of uniform pitch.

Generally it will be found satisfactory to use an arrangement in whichthe flights are relatively short, encircling only a portion of arevolution, as shown, in which they constitute only a half turn. It willalso in many cases be found desirable to use a doublethreadedarrangement as shown, each flight making only a half turn, and theflights operating in succession on the material. It is convenient toprovide the lower portion of the shaft I5 with a portion 19 of reducedsize onto which the impeller sections are set and held in place by theset screws as shown.

The shaft passes up from the hood 45, and through a roller bearing88,.which is carried by the plate BI on the cross members 38 and 3I ofthe frame of the machine. Above the said cross members and rollerbearing, is placed the pulley 82, shown as being of the multi-groove,V-groove type. This pulley may, of course be driven in any convenientmanner. A quill 88 is placed on the shaft at the position of the pulley,and the pulley is connected to this quill. The shaft is splined for adistance vertically according to the vertical travel which it must makeduring the filling operation, such splines being shown at 84. It will beseen that with this arrangement the shaft is at all times drivenirrespective of its vertical travel.

The upper end portion of the shaft carries a head member 85, best shownin Figure 10. For this purpose there is a suitable bearing 86 set intosaid head member so that the shaft may rotate freely, but the headmember will nevertheless travel up and down with. the shaft, and thehead member is incapable of axial movement along the shaft. A nut 81 isthreaded onto the extreme end of the shaft as shown.

Extending upwardly from the main portion of the frame are the stands 88and 89, (see Figures 1, 2, 3, 4 and 10). Each of these includes the sideplates 98 and 9|, with the channel section 92 between them; and each ofthe channel sections carries a pair of vertical guide bars 93 and 94which thus provide a vertical groove. The head member is provided withthe side portions 95 and 96 which travel in such grooves vertically.

At the upper end of the stand 88 there is a bell crank 91 pivoted to thestand, and with its arm 98 adapted to reach over into alignment with theside of the portion 95 of the head memher. A trip pin may be set intoone or the other of the holes 99 or I88 of the side portion 85, so thatwhen the shaft and head member reach the upper limit of travel said pinwill move against the arm 98 and rock ,the bell crank. A link 'I8Iconnects to the other arm I82 of the bell crank, and it will be notedfrom Figures 1 and 10 that when the bell crank stands with its arm 98horizontal, said link I8I has passed dead center so that no amount ofpull downwardly on the link can rock the bell crank to the left. The arm88 of the bell crank reaches through a slot of the stand 88, and saidarm of the bell crank rests against the floor of such slot to limitrocking movement of the right. Thus when the platform 58 is to besupported horizontal the bell crank is held against further rockingmovement towards the right in Figures 1 and 10. There is a lever I83pivoted to the cross member 383* andthe'upper end of the link 55'connectsto one end of said lever, and the lower' end of the link 'I8Iconnects to the other end of said lever. When the platform is loaded thelink 55 is in compression, and the link I8I isintension, so that theaction as hereinabove explained will occur. I

It will be noted that as soon as the shaft and its head have reached theupper limit of movement, thebell crank willbe slightly rocked towardsthe left, and as soon as dead center is passed the tension of the linkI8I will swing the bell crank suddenly full over, so that the platformwill be suddenly released, and the filled bag will be delivered asalready explained. After the bag has been thus delivered the platformmay be again raised and the bell crank turned over, either by hand orotherwise, preparatory to'another operation. Generally this may beaccomplished by merely swinging the platforminto horizontal positionwhich will serve also to throw the bell crank over into set position Itwill be noted that upon the release of the platform, with consequentdropping of the filled bag, the shaft and impeller are allowed to fall,due to the fact that the force which caused them to rise was theengagement of the impeller with the top portion of the material withinthe bag. Such falling of the shaft and impeller might result in damagethereto, and would be objectionable in any case. I have thereforeprovided means to check such fall. The same, in the form shown, takesthe form of a shock absorber I84 of suitable form, such as a hydraulictype hereinbefore mentioned, mounted on the stand 88, and having the armI85 reaching through a slotof said stand to a position where it may beengaged by a pin' I88 on the head member as the latter nears the lowerlimit of its travel. A spring I8I may be provided for restoring the armI 85 of the shock absorber to its initial position when the shaft andhead member again rise during another filling and packing operation, anda pin I88 may limit the movement of the arm I85 under the force of suchspring. The bottom travel of the head member and shaft is limited by theengagement of the head member 85 with a plate I88 carried by the crossmembers 28 and 28, or by angle bars H8 and III carried thereby, as shownin Figure 10.

Itis noted that the splines 84 on the shaft should be of sufficientlength to permit driving engagement with the quill 83 during the maximumtravel needed for filling bags of the maximum capacity intended for usein the machine. In the form shown in Figures 1 to 11 inclusive thesesplines travel down into the upper portion of the enclosure when theshaft and impeller are low down, so that at such times the splines aresubject to the dust and other material within such enclosure. Suchmaterial does not, however, escape to the atmosphere. 7

In the modified arrangement shown in Figures 12, 13 and 14 I haveprovided means to drive the shaft directly by means of an electricmotor. The same is designated as H2, and is shown as of an alternatingcurrent type, such as an induction motor. It has the rotor I I3 which ismounted on the quill H4, and the shaft I5 passes up through this quill.The upper end of the quill has the teeth to engage the splines of theshaft, the lower portion of the quill being untoothed as shown,especially by comparison of Figures 13 and 14, which are sections at thepoints designated on Figure 12. The motor may be mounted in anyconvenient manner above the hood 45, and due to amine-4 1 the height ofthe motorritself it will generally be found-that when the teeth of the-quill are formed near the upper end ofthey quill the shaft may besoproportion'ed as respects the' splines that the full upward movementduringa filling o'per'ation maybe accomplished-even when'the splines donot !enter into the hood during the :full lowering =r'novement of theshaft and impeller. It will be underl'stood'ithajt'thefshaftFabove themotor of Figure 12 is provided with a head such as the head 85, and thatthe o erations are to that extent the same as heretofore explained.

This arrangement and means and process'for filling and packing the bagsis well adapted for high speeds of operation. In fact speeds equal tonormal motor speeds may be used, such as from 1200 to 1750 revolutionsper minute, so that the direct motor drive is very well adapted to thiswork.

The operation and sequence of events will be readily understood, but thefollowing explanation is also desirable. When the platform has beenraised and latched up, a bag is placed up over the tube 42. The newweighed body of material is then fed down through the chute 46 fromabove, and as it descends into the upper portion of the tube 42, anddown through the same, the rapidly rotating impeller forces the firstportions of such material against the bottom of the bag supported on theplatform. As further material descends so that the space beneath theimpeller becomes fully occupied, the impeller rests on the material sofar compacted, and still furtherincrements of the material flow in andthe impeller keeps Working on them, working its way higher and higher asthe material continues to flow in, but at all times the impellercompacts the material to the extent determined by the weight of theshaft and the impeller and the head 85, all which parts must besupported solely by the engagement of the impeller blades with the socompacted material. The direction of rotation is, of course, such as totend to make the impeller feed its way upwards through the material, asshown by the arrows in Figures 3 and 12. It will be noted that thecompacting and packing operation is at all times that due to the weightof the shaft and connected parts, so that the compacting or packingaction, is perfectly uniform throughout the height of the mass, from thebottom to the top. Also, this compacting action proceeds uniformlythroughout the entire mass, and proceeds as the material enters the bagtube 42, as distinguished from an arrangement in which the entire massof material is compressed from one end thereof, in which case suchuniformity cannot be secured.

It will also be noted that if desired a certain additional packingaction might be secured by allowing the impeller to remain in contactwith the upper portion of the compacted or packed mass of material,whereupon the rotations of the impeller would of themselves exert acertain amount of jarring action on the entire mass. In such case,however, the weight exerted on the entire mass would be due to that ofthe shaft and connected parts. In this connection it may be mentionedthat in some cases a weight of substantially two hundred fifty poundswill be found satisfactory for the filling of bags of flour containingsubstantially one hundred pounds of flour.

While I have herein shown and described only certain embodiments of thefeatures of my invention, still I do not intend to limit myself thereto,except as I may do so in the claims to follow. v

I claim;

the'lewerrclosed endof; the bag,- means to sup- I port saidfpkatformpermittingithefsameto swing down awayfrom the bagrsupport; means toconvey the-filled bags laterally away from the filling position, ":mearns" to dampen the falling. "moves-men't 10f the '1 bagsias'thecpl'atform .is :pei'mitte'd to swing down comprising a pair ofplates pivotally mounted at the sides of the bag to swing abouthorizontal axes, and spring means tending to move said platestowardseach'other, and means to supply loose material to the upper open end ofthe bag, and to compact said material within the bag, substantially asdescribed.

2. In a machine of the class described, the combination of means tosupport a bag vertically with its open end up, a platform beneath thelower closed end of the bag, means to support said platform permittingthe same to swing down away from the bag support, means to convey thefilled bags laterally away from the filling position, said meanstravelling transversely of the axis of swing of the platform and indirection from such axis across the vertical alignment of the bag,together with means to dampen the fall of the bag from the platform,comprising spring pressed means to engage the side faces of lowerportion of the bag adjacent to the lateral conveying means,substantially as described.

3. In a machine of the class described, the

combination of a tubular bag support mounted in vertical position, meansto secure the upper end of a bag embracing said support, toithe support, means to direct material laterally and downwardly into the supportand into the sosupported bag, a vertically extending shaft extendingcentrally downwardly through the support and said shaft being verticallymovable,

meansto support said shaft, and means tocontinuously drive the shaftwhile permitting such vertical movement thereof, comprising a motorabove the upper end. of the bag support and having a stationary stator,and also having a rotary rotor, in alignment with the shaft, and asplined connection between the rotor aforesaid and the shaft, togetherwith an impeller on the lower end portion of the shaft, the splines ofsaid connection being such as to permit vertical movement of the shaftand impeller substantially equal in amount to the vertical dimension ofthe bag, substantially as described.

4., In a machine of the class described, the combination of means tosupport a bag in vertical position with its upper end open, means todirect material into said upper open end, a vertical shaft reachingdownwardly axially of "the bag, means to support said shaft to permitvertical and rotary movement thereof, an impeller on the lower endportion of said shaft, and means to drive the shaft continuously whilepermitting vertical movement of the shaft, comprising a motor mountedabove and in alignment with the shaft and impeller, and including astator and a rotor within the stator, together with a splined connectionbetween the rotor and 5. In a machine of the class: described, the

combination of a vertical bag'tube, means to support a bag on said tubewith its open end support the platform along one edge thereof, a

vertically extending shaft extending downwardly into and concentric withthe bag tube, means to support said shaft in such position whilepermitting both rotary and vertical axial movements of the shaft, meansto drive the shaft dur- 'ing its axial movements, a catch for supportingV the platform in substantially horizontal position,

and an element carried by the shaft to engage the catch at the upperlimit of shaft movement and disengage the platform, to thereby permitthe same to swing down and deliver a bag supported thereon,substantially as described.

ALFRED SOWDEN.

